Monday, July 16, 2012

Bluff City Vegan Eats: Lunchbox Eats

Yo, it's been a way long time since I've written a Memphis restaurant review. That's mostly because I've reviewed all of the places I dine regularly, so writing about new ones means branching out. That's exactly what I did when I visited Lunchbox Eats with my friend Shannon for a weekday lunch awhile back (Confession: I've been sitting on these pics for well over a month, but I forgot to post them!).

Lunchbox Eats is this quaint little downtown lunch spot with a school theme and a vintage vibe. The first thing I noticed were these cute ass owl salt and pepper shakers. Every table has a different set of retro shakers! The owls are not what they seem ...

And our server gave us menus, which are printed on ruled notebook paper! Adorbs!

I'm not typically one to order anything besides water to drink because I don't like to drink my calories. But when the server mentioned Blueberry Lemonade, I couldn't resist. It came in this giant Mason jar, and it hit the spot on a hot, summer day.

I checked the menu out online before our lunch date, so I knew that there was only one sandwich that could be made vegan. But that was okay because it sounded delicious. The Extra Curricula Portabella is described as "a playful take on a Wellington, because this one is with only MUSHROOMS! Smoked Portabella Mushrooms piled with a soulful mixture of veggies, sandwiched between Crispy Phyllo Dough joined with Tomatoes and Spouts."

There's no cheese on this sandwich, so you don't have to ask to have it left off. But the phyllo is usually buttered, so be sure and ask them to spread it with oil instead. Tastewise, this sandwich was delicious. It needed a little salt, but everything in my life needs more salt, so ... Also, this sandwich must be eaten with a fork because it's nearly impossible to pick up. Oh, and did you see the cute ass lunch tray it's served on?

The vegan sides at Lunchbox Eats are the best part. Besides the usual fries, they have Chickpea Crunch (roasted chickpeas) and Kale Chips!!! I had to try the kale chips!

These are baked to crispy perfection, and they're served plain. Just salt and oil. So I dipped mine in ketchup. So, so delicious.

Shannon ordered a meat sandwich, so I'll spare you. But she did insist that I take a picture of her French Fries. They give you a whole pound of fries with one order! And they're quite tasty:

Overall, Lunchbox Eats is awesome. Besides the portabella sandwich, they also have a ginormous salad that can be made vegan. It's got roasted corn, roma tomatoes, banana peppers, pickles, and Tabasco onions. But be sure and ask them to omit the cheese and cornbread croutons (actually, I'm not sure if these are vegan or not, but I'd leave them off to be on the safe side).